How will technology shape parenting?

28.02.2018

by Veronika Shoebridge

What will and does new age parenting and baby gear of the future look like?

CES or if you want The Electronics Consumer Show is a perfect reason to visit Las Vegas at the beginning of each new year. It wasn’t any different this January. Especially for those, who love technology, design trends and everything in between. Thousands of companies, startups and tech professionals from near and far come to see what is next. Recently, one of the rising categories is Baby Tech. But before we get into that, let’s check out what did CES 2018 bring to the technology world and how will this technology shape for example parenting this year.

The next big thing is not a thing

Smart technology no longer cuts it. Developers are working extra hard to introduce people to the next big thing: artificial intelligence. When we are listened to, understood, and given a chance to act, we are happy. That is why A.I. is the next big thing. This year’s CES was a perfect example. AI was at the forefront with a huge display of self driving cars, virtual reality, drones and all sorts of robots that are becoming more human like with each passing year.

Electronic toys can now do a lot. They can listen, watch, learn, adapt, and predict. They are slowly becoming everything we had hoped they would be: packed with cutting edge hardware and software, responsive, empathic. But that’s not all.

Highlights of past CES used to address basic physiological needs, for example ideas making homes more functional, improving a person’s health and safety, or making work easier. This years CES was quite the opposite in focusing on psychological needs. There were many products and services intended to help people become more creative, empowered and connected.

Baby tech. Smarter than ever

Parents and kids are and have always been a huge market when it comes to technology and tech developers. Year to year they are coming up with smarter, newer and better solutions to make our children safer and parents lives easier than ever. From smart socks measuring baby’s vital functions to smart car seats, cribs that put your child to sleep without you having to even get up and smart cameras, trackers, thermometers and smartphone apps measuring and analyzing anything from cough to first words or automated toothbrushes that monitor how well is your kid brushing its teeth. But baby tech is not just products for babies and kids. High tech fertility trackers are also there for you if you are planning or thinking about starting a new chapter in your life, meaning starting a family.

Baby electronics accounted for less than 9 percent of baby product sales in 2015, according to industry watcher GfK. The top purchases parents were wanting to donate their hard earned dollars were: food products, car seats and strollers. But that was all proven wrong with a huge array of new baby tech products that were showcased during a 4 day baby tech summit at this years CES.

All of these baby products do however have one thing in common. And it isn’t a positive one. They are really pricey. Manufacturers will therefore have to quickly come up with ways to bring the prices down and really solving a problem, not just coming up with new and extra nice to have features. We have been quite general thus far. So just to be a bit more specific, here are a few examples of hot high tech gadgets for babies and their parents that you may want to get your hands on.

Nursery project

This smart home monitoring system has been given an update and is now supported by Amazon Alexa Voice Service that is in control of the entire nursery ecosystem.

Now even a water bottle can be smart. And Quarz is exactly that. It’s a self cleaning water bottle, previously launched on Kickstarter, that is able to neutralize harmful contamination from the inside of a water bottle thanks to a special LED UVC technology.

TempTraq

Not every thermometer is created equal. This one for example is a wearable patch that is consistently and all the time measuring body temperature and is sending this data to a compatible mobile device.

Snoo

Beds, especially, the ones for the smallest and most precious people of all are also becoming rather smart. Snoo, designed by Yves Behar’s Fuseproject, is a perfect example. It is the world’s first smart baby bassinet. Its incredible feature is actually able to stimulate the womb and by specific noises and movements provide baby with better and longer sleep. It even helps the baby when it starts crying by automatically turning on rocking motion and soothing sounds. It comes with an app too that will let parents know if their attention is needed. Talk about help!

CES 2018 was…

Again chock full of gadgets and companies fighting for attention of tech hungry society from all over the world, with parents being no exception.

A few trends that are worth a mention were for example:

B2B segment was strong

Trackers are history. This year they don’t just track, they treat also.

Some robotic toys were actually meaningful and useful in real life.

There were over 900 startups in attendance.

More than 184 000 visitors attended this years CES.

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About
Veronika

Veronika is an extrovert with a passion for writing. Nothing in particular, simply just loves to write. Besides that, she loves exercising, gardening and fashion. She considers herself to be an extremely organized person.

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